British hacker one step closer to US extradition

[babylonsister]

http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0404/p99s01-duts.html

British hacker one step closer to US extradition
Gary McKinnon loses appeal to avoid facing trial for 'the biggest military computer hack of all time.'
By Arthur Bright | csmonitor.com

Gary McKinnon, the Briton charged with what American prosecutors called "the biggest military computer hack of all time," lost his appeal Tuesday to avoid extradition to the US to face trial for his crimes.

The Guardian reports that Lord Justice Maurice Kay and Mr. Justice Goldring dismissed Mr. McKinnon's challenge to the decision by British Home Secretary John Reid to allow McKinnon's extradition to the US. McKinnon was indicted by the US Department of Justice in 2002 for illegally accessing Pentagon and NASA computers, and could face up to 70 years in prison and $1.75 million in fines.

"Mr McKinnon's conduct was intentional and calculated to influence and affect the US government by intimidation and coercion," they said. "As a result of his conduct, damage was caused to computers by impairing their integrity, availability and operation of programmes, systems, information and data on the computers, rendering them unreliable."

McKinnon's lawyer, who argued that McKinnon should stand trial in Britain because his crimes were committed there, said McKinnon "will apply for leave to appeal his sentence to the House of Lords," Britain's highest court. The Guardian notes that McKinnon's appeal is "seen as a test case on extradition law."

The Scotsman writes that McKinnon, a systems administrator for a small business, became interested in computer hacking after watching "WarGames," a movie about a teenager whose hacking nearly causes a nuclear war. That interest, combined with a fascination with science fiction and UFOs, led to him breaking into US government computers to access "incredibly interesting places."

His hobby did not go undetected and he was arrested in November 2002. McKinnon is charged with using his computer skills to gain access to 53 US army computers, including those used for national defence and security, and 26 US navy computers, including those at US naval weapons station Earle in New Jersey, responsible for replenishing munitions and supplies for the deployed Atlantic fleet.

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[soulcore]

1. I love this story. k&r

He claims he found high resolution images of NASA photos showing UFO's, photos that would later be airbrushed, digitally altered or never released. Which coincides with some of the Disclosure Project testimony. He also claims to have found a list of "non-terrestrial" officers in the US Navy.

It's the seriousness with which the US is pursuing the case that makes it so interesting to me.